Cole backs Walcott

The England defender Ashley Cole believes Theo Walcott is as quick as his Arsenal team-mate Thierry Henry and is convinced the 17-year-old can make a World Cup impact.

Walcott is poised to play some part in England's B international against Belarus at Reading tonight after impressing in training. Cole already views Walcott as a player with "an old head on young shoulders" and is not surprised that Sven-Goran Eriksson has gambled on taking such raw talent to Germany.

Cole said: "I've seen Theo in training and the pace he has can be used to our advantage. He's a great talent and once you see him in training you realise that. He's always going to be a threat if we use him up front and he is going to terrify some defenders. He has the pace to get in behind them. Is he the quickest player at Arsenal? I'd have to say it was once Thierry but now it's out of Theo and Thierry. I've had to mark Theo and I know just how fast he is - very, very fast."